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Roslindale Neighbors: 2 vie to replace Consalvo in District 5 council race

Roslindale residents will head to the polls Nov. 5 to help pick a successor to replace District 5 City Councilor Rob Consalvo, who decided to forgo a reelection campaign for a failed bid for the Mayor’s Office.

On the ballot for the District 5 seat will be small-business owner Jean-Claude Sanon of Mattapan and Boston Public Works manager Tim McCarthy of Hyde Park. The two candidates beat out six other challengers in the preliminary election, with McCarthy garnering 24 percent of voters, while Sanon collected 20 percent. The district covers parts of Roslindale, Hyde Park and Mattapan,

“My wife Maureen and my sons Dolan and Garrett sacrificed hundreds of hours this summer. We knocked every door in the entire District 5, and spent countless hours writing thank you notes,” said McCarthy in an email to the Gazette. “To walk into our celebration party having topped the ticket made me incredibly proud.”

Sanon in an email to the Gazette said he was “a bit surprised” about his second-place finish in the preliminary, as he expected to clinch the top spot. But, he said, he will work to win the Nov. 5 election, as he is “the candidate of all the people.”

McCarthy said he has served the residents of District 5 for more than 20 years, from being a mayor’s neighborhood service coordinator to the director of the Boston Youth Fund to a manager at the Boston Public Works.

He said at the Youth Fund he partnered with over 200 nonprofits to expand summer jobs and create year-round employment for youths. McCarthy said while at Boston Public Works, he provided the leadership to help secure more than $4 million in equipment for neighborhoods through the Boston’s BigBelly Solar Power trash initiative.

“Public service isn’t merely a job, but a life’s commitment,” said McCarthy.

Sanon, a Hatian-born immigrant, said his background includes being a marketer, real estate agent and radio and television announcer. He said is the owner of Avant-Garde, a small business that provides interpretation and translation of immigration and legal documents. He ran unsuccessfully for an at-large City Council seat in 2009.

Asked for his favorite part about Roslindale, Sonon replied that it is a melting pot “where everyone seems to accept one another with more tolerance toward the reality of the diversity in the city or the district.”

McCarthy said his favorite is Sebastian’s Barber Shop, where he has gotten his hair cut since the mid-’80s.

“My boys got their first haircuts in those chairs,” said McCarthy. “Looking out the window and recognizing the great positive changes over the years to Roslindale makes me proud to know that I had a role in those changes.”